Spaces: 5% or 5 %, 50°F or...

boron said:

What is grammatically correct?
5% or 5 %
50°F or 50° F or 50 ° F
<10 or < 10
10-20 apples or 10 - 20 apples

Click to expand...

This isn't a question of grammar; it's a question of style.

I would venture to say, not to include a space between a number and a percent symbol.

The degree symbol goes with the Fahrenheit symbol, not the number, so the space would be between the number and degree symbol, rather than between the symbol and the F.

Greater than or less than signs and hyphens (or en-dashes) that indicate a range can take spaces or not. There's no "rule" for that, merely consistency and adherence to general style.

HTH

boron said:

What is grammatically correct?
5% or 5 %
50°F or 50° F or 50 ° F
<10 or < 10
10-20 apples or 10 - 20 apples

Click to expand...

I agree with CaroGirl -- these are questions of style. I've checked the one I use (US Government Printing Office) and they have the following:

5 percent (they prefer no to use the symbol)
50° or 50 °F (symbol next to the bare number, or next to the scale indicator for Farenheit, Celcius, Kelvin, etc.)
<10
10-20 where the dash is an 'en-dash' and not a hyphen.

Duncan

I like 'em all close up. But that's me. If your publisher has a different way, it can always be changed.